The men drag us into the Van and hold us down. Then they tie our wrists behind our backs using cable ties.
‘Let us go!’ Sally screams.
‘What are we going to do with the human?’ one of the men asks.
‘What are you talking about?’ Sally yells.
‘Alpha Maximus is going to kill you all for this!’ I growl at the men.
They laugh at my words.
Sally looks at me in confusion, ‘Alpha, what?’ she says.
‘Where are you taking us?’ I ask the men.
‘Well, the intention was for you to die alongside Alpha Maximus, but Alpha Tate argued that you are his property and that he should choose what will become of you,’ The man tells me.
My breathing quickens as I begin to hyperventilate, ‘You’re taking me to Alpha Tate?’
‘Yes,’ he says.
‘No! Please, let me go! I don’t want to go back to Alpha Tate! Please, he will hurt me,’ I beg.
‘What Alpha Tate does with you is not our business!’ he snaps.
‘Now it’s a long drive to Dawnbury, so I suggest you sit tight and stop talking!’ he warns.
‘Is that where Alpha Tate is?’ I ask, sobbing.
‘Yes,’ he replies.
‘Who is Alpha Tate? Why would he hurt you?! What the hell is going on?’ Sally asks.
I turn my head and look at her, ‘He was my Alpha and first mate, but he kept me as a slave and rejected me,’ I tell her.
‘You were kept as a slave? Sally asks in horror. I nod. ‘What’s an Alpha? And when you say mate, are you saying he is like your ex-boyfriend or something?’ she asks.
‘Will you all shut up back there!’ the driver yells.
Sally is full of confusion but too scared to ask more questions or make a sound. It’s now nightfall. Sally and I fall asleep against each other.
We are abruptly woken when the van door flies open. A torchlight shines over my face, making me squint.
‘Slave, how I’ve missed you!’ Alpha Tate says in a sadistic tone.
‘You look so different, so beautiful, all scrubbed up, all nice and fancy!’ he says, licking his lips.
‘If you even think about laying a finger on her, I will cut your frigging balls off!’ Sally yells.
‘Well, well, I’ve always wanted a pet human,’ Tate chuckles.
‘Why does everyone keep referring to me as a human? she yells.
Alpha Tate smirks, ‘You’re going to be in for a big surprise,’ Alpha Tate laughs.
He leans into the van and grabs my arm, dragging me out. ‘Are you going to kill me?’ I ask him.
‘Well, that depends on you, Slave,’ he says, stroking my face.
I try to dodge my head away from his hand in disgust.
‘My name is Hope! It’s not Slave!’ I yell at him.
‘hmm, It does suit you,’ he grins, pulling my arm towards the pack house.
The other man grabs Sally, but she puts up a good fight kicking them before a second man approaches to help drag her behind us. I admire the courage and fight Sally has within her. We’re taken to a room together, Alpha Tate pushes me into a lounge seat, and Sally is pushed beside me. The men leave, but one stands guard outside the room. Our hands are still bound behind our backs.
Alpha Tate sits in a chair opposite us and plonks his feet up onto the coffee table. He grabs an apple from a plate and starts slicing pieces off with a dirty knife.
I cringe every time he eats a slice of apple in his mouth. He quietly watches us while he keeps eating. The fireplace is lit, adding a nice flickering glow and warmth to the room. Sally looks around the room, most likely in search of a weapon.
After an hour of staring at us in silence, he finally speaks. ‘Why hasn’t he marked you yet?’ he asks, looking at my neck.
I look away, and my cheeks blush, ‘That’s none of your business,’ I say to him.
Alpha Tate stands up and walks over to me.
He grabs my arm to make me stand up, ‘Since when did you get the courage to speak to me, your Alpha, like that?’ he spits angrily in my face.
‘Since I realised what a jerk you are!’ I reply.
He drags me out of the room and tells the man waiting outside to keep an eye on Sally. Sally yells at Alpha Tate, warning him not to harm me.
Alpha Tate takes me into a large bedroom, pushes me onto the bed, and then crawls on top of me. He brushes my white hair from my face and neck.
‘I should mark you right now!’ he says to me.
‘You rejected me! Remember?’ I tell him.
‘I know, but I took that back,’ he growls.
‘You can’t just take it back!’ I argue.
‘Well, I did, and you have no choice in the matter!’
‘I’m Alpha Maximus’s mate now!’ I yell.
‘Not if I mark you first!’ he growls.
I glare at him. ‘Don’t you dare!’ I scowl.
‘Lady, luck is on your side Hope because I don’t plan on marking you tonight. Instead, I’m going to wait until Alpha Maximus finds you here, and I will do it in front of him as I planned on doing the night he was meant to die,’ he smiles.
‘You’re a monster,’ I shout.
‘I love it when you call me names,’ he laughs.
‘Are you going to untie my wrists?’ I ask.
‘I suppose I can untie you. It’s not like you’re strong enough to do anything,’ Alpha Tate laughs.
Using his dirty knife, he turns me around and cuts the cable ties.
I shift and pounce on him, growling, snapping, and snarling,
‘Since when in the wands have you been able to shift?’ he yells, trying to push me away.
I bite his arm, and he cries out in pain before shifting into his big grey wolf. We snarl and bite at each other. Then he grabs my neck with his teeth pressing down hard enough to cut off my oxygen.
I can’t free myself. Alpha Tate bites down even harder every time I try to move. I shift back into my human form against my will and blackout.
I wake up to the sun shining onto my face through the window. I realise I blacked out for the whole night. I quickly Jump out of bed and run to the door, but it’s locked. There’s a dress on the chair. I quickly put it on and run to the window.
I see I’m on the third floor, climb out, and carefully crawl to the next window. I have to find Sally. I can’t see her through any of the windows. I need to check the second level. So, I slide down a pipe and grab onto a balcony rail on the second floor. I can’t see anyone through the window, but it’s open, so I climb through. I’m very good at this because when I was a slave, I was always sneaking in and out the attic window. I poke my head out of the room and quietly creep a few metres down the hall to the next room. I quietly open the door and see Sally asleep on the couch.
Her hands are still bound. It’s the same room I was in when we arrived. I wake her up only for her eyes to look behind me.
I turn around to see Alpha Tate smiling, ‘Hope, are you trying to leave me already?’ he asks with a grin. Tate stands there with his arms crossed. There are three other men with him, ‘Untie the human and bring her downstairs.’
‘My name is Sally! Not human!’ she shouts.
Alpha Tate brings me to a sitting room. I freeze as I enter.
‘Why isn’t that witch dead?’ Alpha Liam yells.
Everyone turns to stare at me.
Alpha Tate takes my hand and kisses it, ‘This witch is my Mate and Luna,’ he smiles.
I try to pull my hand away from Alpha Tate, but he grips my hand harder. He sits facing alpha Liam and holds me down onto his lap tightly so I can’t move.
Alpha Liam glares at me. ‘So if she is here, then where is Alpha Maximus ?’ Liam asks. ‘They were in Threadington. No need to worry. Alpha Maximus will find Hope here. All we have to do is to wait for him to come to us. I have double the warriors on patrol throughout the territory, so we will know when he is here,’ Alpha Tate says to Alpha Liam.
‘How are we going to capture him then? I haven’t gotten hold of half the Alpha’s that are supposed to be here to help kill him.’ Alpha Liam growls.
‘I will make him choose to surrender, or else I will kill Hope,’ he says.
‘No!’ I shout as I try to break free of Alpha Tate’s grip. ‘I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!’ I scream.
‘Oh, don’t be like that, Hope,’ Alpha Tate chuckles, holding me tighter. I slip my arm free and elbow him in the face. He falls back onto the floor. I quickly stand up and run, grabbing Sally’s hand.
‘Get her!’ Alpha Tate yells, pointing at us.
